Distortion
by OrcinusTheOrca
Summary: It's been eight years since the Soleanna incident and those who had been present to the End of the World have moved on, only able to hope that the future is in a better place. One day, a problem arises in Westopolis and when Shadow and Rouge arrive to investigate, they come across someone who was said to be dead.
1. Chapter 1

"Where is it?!"

Ruby red eyes looked up from the computer they had been preoccupied with to instead focus on the white bat on the other side of the room. Said bat was on their hands and knees, rummaging through multiple drawers and boxes like a maniac. Papers, folders, and other trinkets that really had no place being there were carelessly thrown across the floor. The red eyes lowered in annoyance at the mess and the computer being used was shut off with a soft click.

"What are you doing?" The deep and smooth voice of Shadow asked as he leaned back in his chair.

Rouge's head popped out from behind her desk, locking eyes with the one addressing her. She seemed a little bewildered that she caught her stoic partner's attention but shrugged it off and replied, "A gift from Topaz." Her response was quick, and her hand waved about in dismissal. Shadow leaned back in his chair; his facial features clearly showing his lack of interest now that the culprit of distress was found out. Rouge obviously knew this, so she wordlessly returned to her searching, leaving Shadow to observe.

Shadow's eyes were still resting midway as if he were only on the verge of falling into a deep slumber. That wasn't too far from the truth. He had been staring at a screen all day, with little to no action for almost two weeks straight. The only time he could think of when he did something active was when he had apprehended some children at the park, their encounter alone having been just coincidence. Other than that, it was quiet and the perfect time to catch up on paperwork, because suddenly he was required to do that now.

"Ah-hah!" Rouge exclaimed pulling up a loose tile to reveal a large diamond the size of her hand hidden underneath. "I should've known I had hidden it there. I must be losing my touch."

Shadow scoffed, "If only."

Rouge sighed and got to her feet, cradling the gem like a child as she did so, "You can at least pretend to be somewhat interested. After all, I go through all the trouble to put on the drama act whenever you decide to do something stupid."

"Yes, sure you do," Shadow groggily answered, hardly paying attention to what she was saying. He was far too tired, and the conversation was visited multiple times a week already. He closed his eyes, wanting to slip off to the dream world and pretend that the world was quiet and well.

"Well, then," she huffed, plopping down into her chair and looking over at her computer. She set the diamond by her keyboard and began to type away rapidly. Her fingernails moved flawlessly along the keyboard, years of practice showing itself off. She checked through emails, news reports, and at one point some new photos from the latest museum exhibits. Just like Shadow, she was bored with the quietness of their job and needed something to do. Even if it was illegal. Unfortunately, there wasn't anything in particular that piqued her interest. She sighed and looked over at Shadow, who, at this point, was already nodding off.

"Any plans for tonight?" Rouge asked, slumping in her chair with the most defeated expression.

"Hm?" Shadow opened an eye, looking at Rouge, "no." He took a moment to straighten his posture and stretched out his limbs. As much as he wanted to go to sleep, he was technically still at work, if one could even call it that...

Rouge smirked and leaned against her desk, caressing the diamond with a soft hum. "Well, then, seems we both have a boring evening ahead of us. How about dinner? I'll buy."

Shadow watched as Rouge lifted the large diamond, waving it back and forth in the air like a treat. To some, it may have been, but Shadow only yawned and shook his head. "I'll pass. They probably wouldn't even let me in anyway."

Rouge drew back, seemingly offended and opened her mouth to retaliate when the full realization came to her. Her eyes widen only to soften with understanding and then melding into a sort of anger. She pulled open one of her drawers and dropped her jewel inside, closing the drawer again with a louder bang than would have been reasonable.

"I could convince them otherwise," Rouge suggested with anger very much evident in her tone of voice. Her leathery wings twitched behind her in agitation, presenting the emotion already clear.

Shadow nodded his head, acknowledging her offer but not at all giving his consent. He had no doubt in Rouge's skills, but he was sure that if she defended him in any way, it would only lead to more controversial debates. He had enough of those already. Grimacing at the thought, he closed his eyes once more.

Rouge watched Shadow, growing more irritated when she assumed he was falling asleep again. She threw her hands up, groaning in exasperation as she said, "If you're really that bored here then go spar with Omega."

Shadow didn't even open his eyes as he wearily shook his head, "He's helping Stewart with something. What for, I don't know."

Rouge was still angry at the answers being given to her but snickered when she heard the name spoken, "I sometimes wonder what the crazy man is building. A bomb?"

Shadow responded with a forced laugh, "Yes, I'm sure that's what he's doing. Because G.U.N. is that stupid."

Rouge tapped her desk, before turning to her computer and furiously typing once more, "I wonder what Blue is up to. It'd be nice to get out of this office." Through the corner of her eye, she smirked slyly as she joked, "and away from you."

"Hmph," Shadow tiredly answered, briefly cracking an eye to look at his partner before promptly shutting it. He wriggled a bit into his cair, trying to find a more comfortable position, before finally settling down.

After that, the room went silent, with Rouge's manicured nails typing on her keyboard being the only audible noise to be heard. Shadow sat as still as a statue, listening to the rhythmic clicking of the keys with a content expression. For an uncounted amount of time did the two sit in comfort, enjoying the other's company. That was, of course, ruined when the office door was thrown wide open and a young redheaded man came running in. Before the door even had even slammed against the wall, Shadow's eyes had snapped open, and he was on his feet, fists drawn up in offense.

Rouge didn't even look up from her computer, "Hello, Sam. What brings you to our humble abode? Wanna challenge Handsome?" she shot Shadow a teasing look which was met with an instant glare.

The newcomer to the room, Sam, stood there awestruck, his green eyes going from one Mobian to the other. His mouth hung open, trying to form words but ultimately unable to. It wasn't until a minute or so of trying to get the functions of his mouth to work together did he finally speak. "You're kidding, right?"

"What's the matter?" Shadow asked, cocking an eye ridge in question.

It was never that unusual when Sam barged into their office like this. If anything, it was a natural occurrence. Sam wasn't someone who seemed to understand that there were certain places off limits, specifically the office that Team Dark often used. However, though Shadow wanted Sam to understand this room was off limits, Rouge seemed to encourage the human to keep coming. Shadow's only guess was that the bat liked to see him suffer. Shadow probably wouldn't have minded, he was quite good at blocking out annoyance. The actual problem laid in the fact that every time Sam and he were in the same room, the human would instantly make up some ridiculous challenge. He half-expected that to be the case now, for some declaration of war to be made towards him. Judging by the look on the man's face, he guessed that wouldn't be the case today.

"There's some kind of energy thing going on. There's also a giant robot! All in Downtown! They're sending an entire unit to deal with it." Despite being a grown man, Sam appeared to be an overgrown child on Christmas Day. An odd thing to find fascinating, Shadow thought, but to each their own.

"Do they know what induced it?" Shadow queried, grabbing a jacket that was draped over his work chair. He was pulling it over his arms when Sam met his gaze with a fierce "I don't like you" kind of look.

"I heard someone say Chaos Control or something. I don't know, I'm not down there. They wanted me back here to help with other stuff," Sam pouted, folding his arms over his chest. Shadow could've sworn he heard the words "stupid commander" be muttered under the man's breath. That, however, was typical behavior for this base it seemed.

Shadow didn't wait for any further clarification. After slipping on the maroon jacket, he nodded to both beings in the room. "I'll meet you there."

With that, Shadow disappeared in a bright flash, leaving Sam and Rouge alone in the room. Sam's jaw dropped, his mind trying to register what had just happened to the hedgehog and ground his teeth. He would have started yelling if Rouge hadn't stood from her chair and walked past the human.

"Well come on," Rouge called while sauntering down the hall. "Unless you're planning on staying here."

Sam's eyes narrowed, but he hardly hesitated. He chased after the black-clothed bat, quickly meeting her stride as they made their way down the hall to the nearest exit.

C:C:

Shadow let out a small grunt as he fell from a short height, planting metal shoes into cement and brick. He picked himself up and immediately began looking for his designated target. He barely had to look before he spotted the mech that apparently required every G.U.N. unit available to apprehend it. He scoffed at the thought, especially when the machine seemed only on par to the ones Doctor Eggman usually distributed, only standing a few heads taller.

He made brief adjustments to his inhibitor rings, making sure they were on well and tight. As he did that, Shadow took in the size, shape, and what kind of power the robot could contain. Once deciphering what points would be best to attack and just how he would exact those attacks, he leaped from his perch and came crashing down to the streets below. He barely touched the ground before activating his air shoes, propelling himself at full speed.

Red eyes looked up at the path ahead, taking in the mess of rubble and even some unmoving bodies of the people who had been unfortunate enough to be caught in the fray. Shadow directed his gaze away and focused all his attention on his objective. While racing down the evacuating streets, he passed by many armed vehicles, all carrying his fellow soldiers preparing for battle. He came to a halt next to one of the vehicles, where one of the soldiers was throwing out commands to his own men.

"Clear the area. I'll deal with the machine."

Before the soldier could even get out a sound, Shadow was off, now charging head on for his self-designated enemy. As he skated closer, he began to examine the robot at a closer angle. Though it seemed it was loaded with ammo, it hardly used any of it. Instead, its attention seemed mostly focused on the buildings and ground of the surrounding area. Thus, that meant a lower chance of it being able to detect any incoming attacks from above. With that knowledge, the ebony hedgehog made his first move.

"Chaos spear," he yelled, drawing back his hand and flinging it back, sending a spear-shaped blast of energy at the base of the robot's neck-like part. Despite the small size of the projectile, upon connection, the robot stumbled forward and smashed into the side of a building. Shadow mentally winced and prayed that no one had been inside. The machine pushed itself back upright and after a few seconds of just standing there began to look around for its attacker. In those few seconds, Shadow had snapped his fingers, disappearing from his vulnerable place on the ground and to the robot's head, out of view.

Shadow took hold of the edge of the machine's head and, with as much strength as possible, swung his entire body around and slammed his metallic shoes into one of the robot's optical scanners. His response was a loud mechanical screech that resounded throughout the air.

He narrowed his eyes and got down in a fighting position, waiting for the robot to retaliate. What occurred next was not what he had been expecting. The expectation of a fight was dispelled as the enemy began to look back at the ground, tramping away further into the city with more damage being made in its wake.

This wasn't natural behavior. Most of his experiences with machines were when they were attacked they usually fought back. Omega was a prime example of that. But this thing didn't seem to care if he was there or not, meaning there was something else it was here for. Once more, he teleported up to its head, this time taking the time to see what this thing was attempting to accomplish. It was now that he realized that the machine wasn't intentionally destroying the surrounding area, its mass was the culprit. If anything, all this thing seemed to be doing was looking for something...

As if in response, the robot leaned forward and took up a handful of rubble from the ground. Spreading its metal fingers, it let the dust and cement fall to the ground, slowly sifting through the debris. Shadow scoffed at how easy it had been to prove his suspicions true.

"Alright then," he smirked. Using his air shoes to give him an extra boost, he jumped into the air before curling into a ball and rolling in place. What resulted was his body colliding with metal and a horrible screeching that filled the air. He began to wear down on the metal, feeling himself fall a little more with every passing second. The sound itself was pure agony, with his sharp quills bearing down on layered steel.

He wasn't sure how long he was there, but eventually, Shadow felt his weight drop and knew he had successfully broken through. Now through the metal barrier, he began to ricochet within the head of the machine like a pinball. Sparks flew, metal pieces fell, and wires were torn from their place as he kept at it. It wasn't long before the force had become too much and he came spinning out of the machine's head, sending shards of metal and wiring raining down below. Upon escaping, Shadow uncurled from his position and came to a skidding halt, using his skates to keep himself from colliding with the ground too hard. Once he had slowed down, he turned back to the machine, ready to continue the fight but only saw his defeated enemy. The machine's once functioning body was now nothing but a metal statue, arms hanging by its sides and dead stare.

Shadow nodded at his victory, taking the opportunity to dust off his jacket. His eyes scanned the area, taking in the damage and soldiers who had started to gather around the machine to begin defusing any lethal weaponry still active.

"That was quite the performance," Shadow's ear swiveled, and he turned just in time to see Rouge come in for a landing.

"You got here faster than I thought you would," Shadow smirked, folding his arms and watching his partner walk closer.

She shrugged, "It would have been sooner if not for carrot-top."

Rouge smirked and jabbed a thumb behind her towards where Sam was now helping people deal with securing the robot.

"But enough about him," she turned her hand to instead point towards the machine, "F.Y.I., he doesn't have the doctor's mark."

Shadow nodded his head, turning his body to look at the robot at full, "Doesn't surprise me. It's similar in design, but its reactions differ greatly. I suppose we may have another mad scientist on our hands."

Rouge smirked and placed her hands on her hips, "Oh, go on, dear detective."

Shadow rolled his eyes, but he still let a small smile of amusement show through. It quickly fell, but Rouge had managed to catch it. She was going to comment about it, say something about how he was "such a softy," but stopped herself. She watched him just stare curiously at a pile of rubble closest to the machine, one hand of the mech seemingly reaching out for it. Rouge narrowed her sea-green eyes when seeing this and chased after the ebony hedgehog as he moved towards the pile.

"What's the matter?" she asked, placing a gloved hand on his shoulder.

Shadow gave her a quick glance over his shoulder before looking back at the rubble. "It was looking for something. I'm certain of that."

Rouge blinked and folded her arms over her chest, giving her partner an indignant look, "How sure?"

"It was sifting through the rubble," he explained, getting down on one knee and examining one of the more massive mounds of cement and brick. Right above there was an enormous chunk of the building missing, probably having been knocked off by the robot's arm. "I believe there is something in here that it wanted."

Rouge scoffed, "What would anyone want with a pile rubbish? Last I checked, this area doesn't even have anything worth stealing. Trust me, I would know."

"That's what I was thinking," Shadow muttered, running a hand down a slab of stone. "You wouldn't happen to have your scanner?"

Rouge placed a hand on her hip, "Of course. Never leave home without it."

Shadow stood on both feet and away from Rouge's path of sight, "Check the rubble. If nothing, check the others. That thing wanted something, and it's somewhere around here."

The white bat nodded and pulled a small disk from her sleeve, using it to analyze the mess. Shadow moved to look over her shoulder, watching anxiously to see what would come up.

"Oh…" Rouge paled and looked over at her ebony partner, "Well there is something there. I don't think it's a Chaos Emerald, but it's showing heat signatures. Whatever it is, I think...I think it's alive."

Shadow shared her look before lunging forward, immediately working to move the slabs of stone. He had told Rouge to step back, not wanting any of the stone to fall on her. Naturally, the bat did the opposite and began to help remove the stone slabs, pulling and pushing what she could out of the way.

No one even paid the two any attention. As far as they were concerned, the biggest threat was the robot with still active warheads. Rouge and Shadow were able to work in peace, well as peaceful as trying to dig up a living being could possibly be.

An hour or so passed and the sun was slowly beginning to lower, dusk falling over the city. The robot was just now finally being dismantled, and there was a loud cheer from the group of soldiers when the clear was given. For some reason, the two agents were still failed to be noticed.

"Shadow!" Rouge cried, jerking against an unusually large piece, "I-I think this is it. They're here."

Shadow followed the bat's words and hurried to help her remove the stone slab. With his help, the piece was quickly moved from the pile. Rouge let go and immediately ran forward while Shadow discarded the removed stone safely. Just as he set it down on the ground, he heard his name screamed and whirled around.

"What is it?" he hurried over, moving to stand next to his partner. His question was never answered, but it didn't need to be. His eyes went wide like saucers when he saw what they had just dug up.

Lying there, unmoving, was a white hedgehog with a familiar fan of white quills. Thin arms wrapped around the equally small body as the Mobian below drew in shuddering breaths. He was weak and practically every part of him was covered in dirt and–was that blood? There were bruises and cuts all over his body, the one most prominent being a large gash on his upper right arm. There was blood oozing from the blemish, but it wasn't anything fatal. But that wasn't what had the two concerned…

"He's not supposed to be here," Shadow was the one to mutter, taking a cautious step forward and getting down on one knee. He placed a hand on the wounded Mobian's good shoulder, causing the white hedgehog to draw in a sharp intake of breath.

Rouge swallowed and held her hand over her mouth, looking at her surroundings in uncertainty. While there were multiple people out, no one seemed to have any interest in them still. She counted that as a blessing from the gods. Shadow took a tighter hold of that shoulder he held and began to shake it, trying to coax the person to open their eyes.

"Silver?" he called. No response. He began to shake him more vigorously, "Silver, get up."

The Mobian only tensed and curled in on himself. A small whimper escaped his mouth, and an amber eye cracked open. That eye met Shadow's and the body below immediately froze up. Not a muscle moved, a breath made, nor did the eye itself move. It was as if the hedgehog had turned to stone.

Shadow naturally was very confused. What had he done? Was this his doing or was there something wrong with Silver? Did he kill him? Was he dead?!

"It's Silver, right?" Rouge asked, getting down next to Shadow. The question wasn't geared towards Silver, but rather towards Shadow for confirmation. But just as her voice was made heard, the once frozen eye zoned in on Rouge. Both eyes opened as a look of what could only be interpreted as a silent plea.

Rouge too was put off by the sudden look given to her. Was this natural behavior? She cast a glance towards Shadow again before finally addressing the white hedgehog. "I'm Rouge. You don't know me, do you?"

Silver didn't even respond, instead preferring to turn his gaze back to Shadow. Weakly, he raised a hand and placed it on the ebony Mobian's which still rested firmly on his shoulder. Though his face still held fear, he said with the shakiest voice, "Yo-you have no idea how nice it is to s-see a fa-familiar face."

Before Shadow or Rouge could even respond, Silver's eyes slid closed, and that was the last of the conversation. He was out cold, and the two agents didn't know what they were meant to do from here. So far, all they knew was that a person who they and more had assumed dead, was now passed out right in front of them. Passed out but very much alive. Once the shock began to end, the two shook out of their stupor and looked at one another.

"What do we do?" Rouge immediately asked, glancing back down at Silver's unconscious form. "H-he's not dead, and Stone…you know–"

"We can worry about that later," Shadow interrupted her, moving closer towards the unconscious being. He began to move the body into a more comfortable position. "Right now he needs medical treatment."

Rouge spluttered and grabbed hold of Shadow's arm, yanking him away roughly, "Where are you going to take him? You can't just bring him to a hospital. They'll look for I.D. or-or-or something! Which he _doesn't_ have! What are you going to tell them when he doesn't show up on their records?!"

"Well do you have any better ideas?" He snapped back, eyes narrowed in challenge. He glared her down the best he could from his kneeling position, but it held little effect. Rouge only nodded in response, her eyes closing in a way that was meant to convey the emotion of "I'm smarter than you, and everyone knows it." Shadow only scoffed, rolling his eyes, before beginning to gather up the other hedgehog.

"I'm taking him. We can tal-""I wasn't done," Rouge bared her teeth and grabbed one of Shadow's quills, yanking him back. Her reward was a pained grunt which she smirked smugly at.

"As I was saying," she got back to her feet, dusting off the dirt that had collected on her knees, "take him to your place."

"What?!" Shadow snarled, dropping Silver onto the ground a little more roughly than he should have. "Why mine?! Yours is bigger."

"Yeah, but yours is more inconspicuous. After all, where's the first place they look when they suspect something's been stolen?" Her smirk only grew wider. She took a step forward giving him a brief pat on the head.

Shadow swatted back the hand and persisted in shaking his head "no."

"Come on, it'll be fun," Rouge continued, gently pushing Shadow closer towards the unconscious hedgehog's form. "It'll only be for a couple of days."

"You make this sound like it's some kind of walk in the park," Shadow snapped, his hands clenching tightly. "If we can't take him to the hospital then the G.U.N. infirmary will have to–"

"And if they find out what he can do?!" Rouge almost screamed at him. Her eyes were narrowed dangerously, and a hand pushed into the bag by her hip which Shadow knew full well what was inside. She took a brief pause to lower her voice before continuing, "They'll do to him what they do to everything else they see as a threat. You know that."

Shadow opened his mouth, going to retaliate, but only ended up closing it. She had a point. Those seen as threats were almost always captured and then researched for G.U.N.'s use. If not that, it was for some other reason that never ended well. They'd done it with many of the Mobians of this world. Most got out, their abilities seen as easy to combat. But this one...Shadow already knew Silver wouldn't be as lucky.

"Fine," Shadow finally relinquished, grunting as if to add to the already known fact of his disapproval. "I'll take him until he wakes up."

"Oh, don't look so grim," Rouge patted his shoulder with an amused smile, "You'll only be taking him until he's fit to take care of himself. And if it's the commander you're worried about, well, of course, you know better than anyone that I can cover you." To add more to the offer, she gave him a wink which only got an eye roll in response.

Shadow was not at all happy with this predicament and Rouge knew it. But Shadow also knew that the bat was right. Even if he did everything he could to protect Silver, it would only raise suspicion. And suspicion would only lead to more trouble for all of them. Once more, he leaned over and took Silver into his arms, holding him steady and tightly. He was so light and thin; he was almost sure he'd break like a twig if he weren't careful.

"Take as long as you need," Rouge told him again. Her voice more gentle and assuring, "If anything goes wrong... don't kill him."

Shadow couldn't help but chuckle at that comment. Adjusting the still unconscious hedgehog in his arms, he calls out those two famous words, and he once again disappears in a quick flash of light. Rouge waits there for a few minutes longer, staring down at the ground in deep thought. It seemed that their two weeks of nothing had finally come to a close.

C:C:

Heyo! So...I kind of disappeared awhile ago. Just like to say I'm back now and chapters 2 and 3 will be out soon enough. Just posting this here real quick because I messed up XD. See ya in a couple of days. Reviews are very much appreciated!


	2. Chapter 2

Okay, I don't usually make messages at the beginning of these chapters but I thought this might be something to say. So chapter 1 was accidentally uploaded sooner than intended (because I deleted eight chapters and didn't realize it would update those and I didn't want you guys reading the old crappy chapter 1 and getting a bad impression so...sorry for those who saw it before!) For those who read it before, the new chapter 1 was uploaded only a few hours after I realized what had happened. It was updated on May 14 so if you saw it after that...you should be good! Anyways, that should be all. Enjoy the show!

C:C:

Metallic skates moved along barren grounds as Shadow sped through the abandoned rail yard resting just beyond the outskirts of Soleanna. His eyes were creased in deep thought as all his mind could be focused on were the past few days. Reflecting on events such as the Solaris Project, the future of this world, and of course, Mephiles. So much happening in one place, a place he had so conveniently been placed in at this specific time.

He began to slow down his pace for both the precaution of losing concentration and to better pull his thoughts together. He came to a steady walking pace and started to wonder where Rouge could be at this point. Was she safe, or was she once again getting herself into trouble? He couldn't hold the smirk that crossed his muzzle as he knew that the latter option was far more probable.

Still, the past few days were what haunted his thoughts. Some of it made sense, but other bits just didn't. For one, how could man create a god? He knew that he himself was proof enough of artificial life, but his creation had required help. Help that had not even been found on this planet. Yet here were this group of humans, only less than forty years after he was created, and they created gods? It just didn't seem right to him...

" _Sonic!"_

Shadow froze in mid-step, and his ear swiveled in the direction of the scream. It was a woman's scream, one powerful but incredibly high in pitch. He turned his head to the side, catching sight of none other than Sonic the Hedgehog himself standing protectively in front of a human girl. Shadow's eyes narrowed, instantly recognizing the girl from the portrait resting under Eggman's base. Why was Sonic with the princess of Soleanna? Let alone here of all places?!

He watched the scene down below with calculative eyes. Sonic was apparently protecting the princess of Soleanna, arms widespread as he glared at the supposed opponent. The opponent being in the form of an almost pure white hedgehog wearing some sort of black armor and five upstanding quills. This new hedgehog seemed to have small pieces of wood and metal orbiting his body as he stood parallel to Sonic. It raised more questions than answering any, and he wondered if maybe this newcomer was a worked for Mephiles. It wouldn't surprise him, with all that had happened, he could hardly think that his copy could achieve this all on his own.

Shadow's eyes creased when his ear twitched once again, catching the soft hum of a motor. Instantly, he knew who it was. "Doctor." The word ghosted over his lips as he turned his gaze up to the sky. He had turned just in time to see Dr. Eggman's ship coming down silently to the small trio below. The next moment, the princess was snatched up with the aid of two mechanical arms and flown away before Sonic even registered what had happened. Shadow would have reacted himself, had the strike not had been so seemingly quick and been closer. Just as soon as Eggman had her, he was off again, his laughter ringing through the air.

"Elise!" Sonic cried, desperation in his voice, as he made a run after the princess when he was suddenly frozen in place. He was stuck mid-step, both feet off the ground before his body straightened like a stick and moved back to where he had been. Shadow narrowed his eyes, immediately taking notice of the aqua blue aura surrounding the azure hedgehog. Deciding he had seen enough, he took a step back, before running forward and jumping off the cliff's edge using his air shoes to boost him up. The travel down was exhilarating with the wind blowing through his quills. He landed between the two fighting hedgehogs, his metal shoes scraping against the gravel, sending sparks spraying.

The white hedgehog seemed to have been shocked when Shadow had come down and had taken a defensive step back. Shadow heard a thud from behind and assumed that Sonic had been released. He hardly had the chance to check if his suspicion was proven correct or not. Turning your back on an enemy was an abysmal decision. Shadow's eyes narrowed into a glare as he shifted in his stance but remained silent.

The white hedgehog growled and stepped forward, clenching his fist in anger. "Mephiles? Why are you getting in my way? I thought you wanted this."

It would seem his theory was proven right after all. Shadow rose to his full height, just barely towering over the other with a harsh glare, "I am not Mephiles. I am Shadow. Shadow the Hedgehog. The Ultimate Lifeform."

Shadow turned his attention to Sonic and gave him a brief nod. Understanding, Sonic gave a thumbs-up in return, mouthing the word "thanks" and took off running. Shadow turned back to the white hedgehog who now seemed unsure of what he was to do now. His hands clenched and unclenched, their amber eyes never once wavering. Shadow took this as an opportunity.

He looked this new threat up and down, as he did with all his opponents. This hedgehog appeared to be young, possibly around 16 or 17. The black armor he was wearing bore an eerie resemblance towards to the ones used by the G.U.N. soldiers but much stronger. Squinting, he could have sworn he saw the emblem of the G.U.N. marking scratched off from the suit. The most considerable difference being the glowing blue marks on the palms of his hands. He had to admit, that was an odd design choice...

"Get out of my way."

Shadow's mind snapped back to the kid before him, who had gone from uneasiness to boldness in a matter of seconds. Shadow scoffed and shifted his stance once again, "And if I don't?"

The teen growled and got down in his own fighting stance, "I am Silver the Hedgehog, and I've come too far to back down now. So either get out of my way, or you _will_ face the consequences."

At that threat, Shadow struggled to keep a straight face, the twinge of a smile inching onto his face, "You believe you can defeat the Ultimate Life Form? Well, I'll admit, you sound like every other being who has fallen at my hands."

Silver growled, and his hands began to glow a bright blue. As they did, boxes came flying at his body and began to orbit it. As they did, he began to hover only a few inches above the ground as the same aura encased him. "I'm not letting anything get in my way. Step aside, and you don't have to get hurt."

Shadow scoffed at the display but still remained in his position, "I don't know why you're working for Mephiles. What do you even have to gain from this?"

Silver's fists clenched, the boxes under his control cracking along with the action, "What do I have to gain? What do I have to gain?! How about the complete salvation of the future?!"

For once since this conversation had started, Shadow faltered. He had seen the future, a world of nothing but fiery chaos with a creature with god-like strength. The future was in a state nearly uninhabitable, he hadn't seen any life apart from the living creatures of lava. So if that were the case then…

"You're nothing but Mephiles's puppet," Shadow voiced his conclusion. A new story began to click into his head piece by piece until he had a full explanation for what was happening. "What has he told you? That killing the hedgehog will fix everything?"

Silver's teeth gritted, the boxes cracking a bit more from pressure, "That hedgehog is the Iblis Trigger. He is the reason for what has happened to my world. So, for its safety, he must die…" he paused, his eyes narrowing but his body relaxing. "You know that...don't you?"

"Some bits," Shadow answered truthfully. "But I can easily tell that Mephiles has been feeding you nothing but lies. What about him makes you think he is at all trustworthy?"

"Nothing. But he's the best I've got," Silver responded, voice surprisingly even. As he stepped forward. "What can possibly be a worse future than what there is now?"

Shadow would argue but had to remind himself that this Silver had no doubt live his entire life in suffering. Desperate times brought desperate measures, which obviously was not an exception for this one. He sighed, "I have no doubts Mephiles has no good intentions. Whatever he is making you do, you need to stop. Mephiles is not the man you think he is."

"And you're any better?" Silver shouted back, flinging one of his held boxes at Shadow. The ebony hedgehog dodged out of the way, the box shattering upon impact. Shadow whipped towards his opponent, ruby red eyes alight with rage.

"I know who you are," Silver continued, the boxes' and wood's orbit growing faster. "I know what G.U.N. had to do to you. I have no reason to trust you."

"And yet you trust the man who looks exactly like me?" Shadow shot back, a bitter smirk on his face. "Either you're in denial, or you're an idiot."

There was a long pause, Silver's guard being let down for a brief moment. It was the twitch of an eye that gave any warning towards what would come next. With no hesitation, all collected ammo went hurling towards the ebony hedgehog. Shadow's eyes went wide, and he jumped out of the way for the first few but was inevitably struck by most of them. He fell to the earth, groaning as every box made contact with his already aching body. With gritted teeth, he muttered "Chaos Control" and disappeared from his vulnerable state and behind his opponent. Where he had been was now blanketed with splintered wood and broken metal.

"I am not an idiot!" Silver screamed, rounding on his enemy, his eyes ablaze with pure anger and power. "If you're so set on stopping me, then why don't you?!"

Shadow groaned and shook his head, wincing when he felt the pounding of a headache. Even still, a smirk grew on his face. Though he had made his best effort to diffuse the situation, it would seem that there would be a battle after all. Without another word spoken from him, he drew back a hand, collecting chaos energy within his palm and creating his trademarked Chaos Spear. For however long this battle may last, he would make sure that he would win.

C:C:

Car horns blared from the busy street, angry shouts from impatient passengers being passed back and forth. Questions along the lines of "what's going on?" "What's the hold-up?" or the ever occasional "my child is going to die!" were thrown continuously back and forth. Had they paused to listen, the message of the sudden attack may have been heard. Unfortunately, that was not the reality, and the insults and car horns continued to blare from the ever-growing mass of cars.

The officers stationed in this area were doing their best to guide traffic and keep people at bay but were beginning to struggle. While situations like this would have been easy to maintain in places such as Station Square or Soleanna, Westopolis was unused to these sort of unforeseen events. The worst this city had ever experienced had become nothing more than a memory left nine years in the past. The stationed men could only endure the angry people and just pray that the situation would be contained soon.

Just as a few more cars were guided through the narrow piece of road now available, a bright flash of light illuminated the crowded street. There were shouts of surprise and some of the slow-moving vehicles swerved in an attempt not to hit anything. From behind, questions began to spread about what had happened, their voices filled more with exasperation. And though their answer did come, it was quickly lost among the sea of sounds and noises.

Shadow's ear twitched at the sudden change in noise. The transition from somewhat quiet to angry and impatient shouts grating on his nerves. He had somehow managed to chaos control into the middle of the very street being held up, which meant a lot of noise. It didn't help that he knew exactly what was the cause for all of this, and his status among G.U.N. only increased the racket around him. As soon as he had appeared, questions were immediately thrown at him. He should have answered, tried to give clarity to the situation. But he didn't. Instead, he readjusted the unconscious hedgehog in his arms and continued on his way towards the sidewalk, ignoring everyone and thing that tried to speak with him. Some people wisely gave up on trying to talk to him, others continued to shout his way with possibly every insult they could think of. He didn't care.

He stepped onto the sidewalk and began to make his way towards the apartment complex he had been staying in after he had established residence in Westopolis. He sometimes found it ironic that the city he had once watched die was now his new home. The apartment building was an okay place with a good guy running the site. Shadow himself wasn't disturbed often, not since that one guy kept blasting heavy metal music and Shadow came knocking on his door. Ever since he had never been bothered.

"Oh, hello, Shadow! Didn't expect you here so early."

As soon as Shadow had stepped through the doors of his "home," his attention was instantly grabbed by the sound of a voice. A voice that, over the years, had grown all too familiar. His attention immediately went to the middle-aged ox standing right across from him. He was holding a book in his hands, a pleasant smile that looked far too unnatural on his face as he spoke. Mike the ox was the name this Mobian went by and was also the one running the place. He was rather good as a landlord, kind of pushy and nosy, but otherwise tame.

"Hello, Mike," Shadow nodded, continuing his walk towards the stairs. He didn't want to have to deal with questions so soon. Silver was still bleeding from his arm, and the last thing he needed was for that blood to get on the carpeted floor. He didn't look back, even when Mike tried to further continue the conversation.

He fell into a sort of rhythm as he went up one stair after another, climbing higher and higher until he reached the top floor of the five-story building. Despite the current year and date, the building could hardly manage to afford an elevator it would seem. If only his Chaos Control ability could be more on point, but that always seemed to be a difficulty when it came to longer distances.

When he stepped onto the fifth floor, he couldn't help but release a quick sigh of relief. His door was in sight, and after a long overdue fight, he found himself growing tired. The flight of stairs hadn't done much to help with the drowsiness. If anything, he just wanted to collapse in his bed and possibly die. Once more, he began walking, passing by all the other stained doors with a straight face. Even if no one else was here, he refused to let any show of weakness show. So focused was he that his facial expression remained constant even when one of those stained doors went flying open, and an opossum shoved his head out the doorway. Shadow took a step back in defense, his cold red eyes meeting the wild green irises that focused in on Shadow.

"What's that you got there?" Asked the opossum almost immediately, a crooked grin etched onto his face. As if to clarify, his eyes descended down upon the hedgehog still unconscious in the ebony's arms. Instinctively, Shadow's grip tightened.

"That's none of your concern," Shadow responded coolly, returning his path down the hall. He did everything he could to block out the nuisance of the opossum, if only for the sole sake of not ending the Mobian's life on the spot. To his great surprise, the unhealthy looking creature retreated back into his room, horse laugh echoing the halls as the door was once more shut. Shadow groaned, hoping above all things that that would be the last of the interactions for the day.

He came to his door and reached into his coat pocket, drawing out a rusted, silver ring consisting of three keys only. With the white hedgehog still held in both arms, it was a struggle to align the metal key with the lock. But once lined up, he shoved it in perhaps a little too roughly but for all he cared it was in. Unlocking his room door, he pushed himself in and shoved the world out with a loud bang.

He didn't bother locking the door, instead casually tossing his keys onto the kitchen counter and taking in the atmosphere of the place he had come to call home. The main room was somewhat spacious, with minimal furniture aside from the coffee table and the large, bright red couch at the end of the living area. The room was a mess in colors, something Shadow hadn't minded in the past. The carpeted floor was an odd shade of light purple, the walls holding the room together with a vibrant orange. Still, it was home, and he was hardly going to complain about a roof over his head. Even if the bright scarlet couch was mostly his doing…

Making a decision, he walked over towards the couch and set Silver down on the plush cushions. Though the lounge had been bought from a pawn shop of sorts, it was still in decent condition. Shadow himself didn't use it much either leaving the piece of furniture in an almost unused condition.

Shadow sighed and looked over Silver's still sleeping form. Now that he had better light, he could see the severity of the wounds. From what could tell, there appeared to be nothing worse than the large gash on his upper arm. Deciding that would be his first task to tackle, he hurried into the kitchen, grabbing the small, but heavily stocked, first aid kit he kept in the cupboard. When he returned to the sofa, he began work.

He started with cleaning the wound, washing up the dried blood that had soaked into the white fur. Shadow worked to try and clear what blood he could without causing any more damage to the arm, but it was hardly as practical as he may have wished. Sighing, he relinquished, knowing Silver would just have to live with stained fur until they could properly get him bathed.

He followed the rest of the steps with practiced hands. From cleaning the wound and putting the finishing touches as he wrapped up the gash with fresh gauze. Shadow drew back, pleased with the work he had done and was just about to pack up when he heard a moan. Looking back at Silver, he had the chance to just get the glimpse of a discomforted face as the white hedgehog curled into himself, clutching his stomach as he did. It was instead a pitiful sight, and Shadow would have ignored it if one thought hadn't come to mind. He hadn't bothered to check under the clothes his guest was wearing. Though there had been no signs of blemish, he still didn't want any internal bleeding. Sighing, he reached over to push up the shirt to check for damage there when a hand shot out and snatched his arm out of the air.

Shadow froze in place, eyes wide as he comprehended what had just happened. His eyes were locked on the hand that now held his own and, following the limb, found that it connected to the very being he was caring for. His red eyes met with bright amber ones, the amber orbs never once blinking as they remained locked.

Shadow didn't know why, but he let the intense staring contest continue. Perhaps to humor his guest? He wasn't even sure about that. What he was sure was that Silver's grip had undoubtedly developed since the last time they had met and his current size said nothing about his strength. So he remained there, sitting just on the edge of the couch and just waiting to see what would happen. His decision seemed to have paid off when his wrist was released, and Silver's hand returned to hugging his stomach.

"Thanks," Shadow bit out, sarcasm heavy in his voice. He turned back to his kit, snapping the latches back on supposing he wouldn't be able to check for wounds under the clothing. Hopefully, the kid wouldn't die overnight.

He stood up to return the kit to where he had found it, all the while Silver never speaking a word. His eyes just followed him around the room, something Shadow could certainly sense even when his back was turned entirely. This causing him to slam the cupboard shut a little too hard as he whirled on his foot and once more made direct eye contact with the white hedgehog.

"What?" he snapped out, glaring at Silver with a fierce gaze. The response was exactly what he expected with a surprised look soon followed by the diversion of eyes. Shadow was not dealing with that tonight. He marched over towards Silver, who had now gone to staring at the couch,

"If you have something to say, then say it," he spoke firmly, wanting precisely what he said to get across. It was one thing for someone to say something about him, it was another for them to hold back information on him. Silver remained unmoving, and Shadow briefly wondered if the hedgehog was attempting to play dead. He was going to repeat his command, this time with a little more force when a weak voice beat him to it.

"You look different," Silver muttered, voice so hoarse and coughing afterward. Finally, his amber eyes came to look up at Shadow, the orbs glimmering from something Shadow could only identify as fear and uncertainty. The ebony hedgehog let himself relax, coming to the satisfying conclusion that there was no ill thoughts towards him and turned away. Once more he headed for the kitchen, only this time grabbing a glass from the cupboard and filling it with tap water. He returned the glass towards where Silver was, setting it down only to help readjust the white hedgehog into a more accessible position.

"Eight years does that," Shadow responded, though there was hardly any humor in his voice. When he touched Silver to adjust him, the white hedgehog flinched only to go rigid, his yellow eyes going wide and observing Shadow. The ebony hedgehog hardly cared, pushing Silver into place before taking the glass and basically shoving it into his hands. Silver's response was a blink of confusion as he stared at the water being offered to him, but made no attempts to take it. Just a blank stare into a cup of water.

"I-it's been eight years?" Silver's voice finally came out, sounding so horribly broken. Shadow couldn't take it, practically pushing the glass of water to the younger's lips. Thankfully for him, it was accepted, half the glass being downed before it was pushed away. It was enough it seemed, Silver's eyes showing more of a determination, a weak one but it was there.

"That c-can't be right. I-I mean...it can be right, but–" he cut himself off, his mind deciding to stare at his hands was the best way to handle this. Shadow only sighed, placing the glass on the table and taking a seat next to the ivory hedgehog. He wasn't at all good with this comfort thing, but that didn't mean he wouldn't try. He put a hand on Silver's shoulder, drawing the youthful eyes of his guest.

"Well, that seems to be the case here. Is there something wrong with that?" Shadow asked, immediately getting to _one_ the question that had been pressing on him ever since they had found Silver. The others he would save for a better time, but for now, he would take advantage of this situation.

That was at least the want of Shadow's which was quickly cast away when Silver shook his head, a small smile growing on his face, "No. No, it's great actually. C-can I have that glass again?"

Shadow frowned but complied with the request anyway, handing the lukewarm water to the other hedgehog. "Judging by your previous reaction that doesn't seem to be the case."

Silver's ear twitched, a sign he was listening as he gulped down the rest of the water, exhaling deeply when all of it was gone. He held the glass between two hands still, rubbing the side of the cup with a gloved thumb as he responded, "It's been eight years since you last saw me. It's just...I was kind of shooting for an earlier time, y'know?"

"How earlier?"

Silver shrugged, moving forward to deposit the glass of water onto the table before addressing his host once more. "I don't know...a month or so after Soleanna? But this is okay too."

Shadow's eyes only narrowed in suspicion. None of this seemed right to him. He wanted to press for more answers, to learn more of what the real purpose of this Mobian being here in the first place was. But, as if he could read his mind, Silver undoubtedly feigned a yawn as he began to readjust himself in his seat, face contorting with pain as he did so.

"I think I'm going to get some more rest. We can talk more in the morning, okay?" Silver asked hopefully, eyes shining with evident worry.

Shadow's first instinct was to say no. To take this opportunity and milk every little bit of it that he could. But his common sense won the battle with the reminder that Silver was still hurt and needed all the rest he could get. No matter what his wants may be, he wasn't going to let a hurting man stay conscious more than he needed. Nodding his head, the ebony hedgehog stood from his seat and walked to the light switch that rested by the front door. His finger hovered just over it, weight steadily being applied when he turned to Silver with a threatening glare in his eyes.

"We will continue this in the morning, yes?" he asked, voice cold and unwavering. Silver's response was a satisfying nod of the shake and a weak "of course." Pleased with the answer, Shadow flipped the lights off and made his way to his own room, leaving the door cracked in case anything were to happen in the central area. He took a moment to prepare for the night, taking care of teeth and quills and settled into bed with a book in hand. With noise coming from the other room, he gave himself the chance to let his guard down as he opened the book to the page he had last left off.

C:C:

Hiya, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I'm back to writing this (after almost two years of hiatus) and I'm super excited for it. This story, that once was only going to be a stand alone, has now turned into AU series which I have spent far too much time focused on. So, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to The Three Realms series! I hope you enjoy this as much as I do and I wish you a good day. Ciao!  
Feel free to leave reviews and let me know what you think so far. Reviews are very much welcomed ^-^

Also, a huge thank you to my friend Seer of Dreams who helped edit this chapter!


	3. Chapter 3

Morning as it always seemed was swift to come, the soft melodies of songbirds accompanying the rising sun. Their songs mingled with the early morning sounds, only to be drowned out by running vehicles. The morning was a normal one for Westopolis, though somewhat quieter with many citizens still disturbed by the previous attack. Everything was as it should be. Which Silver wasn't very sure if he liked.

The white hedgehog was still lying where he had been placed, head still resting on the cushion and curled into himself as he had been for most of the night. He was wide awake, though that could hardly be told with how still he was laying. It was only his amber eyes that gave away that he was indeed awake, with their constant movement of looking around the room. They were taking in everything from the walls, to the carpet, to the sparse amount of furniture. The room was rather hideous, that was the conclusion had come to as he had looked around, but of course, he had no one to tell this too. No one awake at least.

A deep sigh passed through his lips, and he curled in on himself just a tiny bit more, pressing his chin to his chest. He tightly shut his eyes, and his left hand came up to gently rub his bandaged wound. His eyes were narrowed, as if in deep thought, and there was a heavy frown on his muzzle. His rubbing quickly began to become scratching.

"Come on, Silv," he muttered to himself softly, though holding a sharp edge to it. He allowed his eyes to travel over and look at his scratching hand. As if suddenly realizing what he was doing, he willed it to stop, pulling it away and looking down at the now slightly stained gloves. He sighed again, wrapping himself in a tight hug before saying to himself, "Everything's going to be fine...perfectly fine."

He closed his eyes, trying to ignore the slight ache in his stomach and perhaps try to sleep. It did no good, and though the closing of his eyes had made his queasiness somewhat bearable, he was still trapped in the land of awake. He opened his eyes again, moaning loudly to himself when he caught sight of something in his hand. He looked at his palm, his ear twitching ever so slightly as he stared at the sunbeams that had fallen upon his arm. His tired eyes watched as the light remained in its position, catching the light movements it made as it traveled along with the sun. He stared for a few moments more before his interest was lost where he let his hand fall, the arm coming to hang over the side of the couch.

But, in some part of his mind, it was enough. A small smile began to ghost his lips, and a flicker of hope sparked in his amber eyes. With a soft whisper, he said aloud, "Everything's going to be just fine."

Shakily, he pushed himself to sit up and escape the uncomfortable curled position he had been tucked in throughout the night. He stretched his arms, wincing with every pop and crack as well as the strain it put on his arm. Lowering his limbs, he took the time to actually examine his bandaged wound, pressing a hand to it and wincing at the applied pressure. There was blood seeping through the bandages also, no doubt a result of his scratching at it. Sighing, he rested his back against the couch and folded his arms.

"So what to do?" he muttered aloud, looking from one corner of the room to the other. Aside from the couch and glass table, there wasn't much else in the area that interested him. There wasn't until his eyes caught sight of a broad–and very dusty–T.V. just sitting in the corner of the room. How it could have been missed was beyond the ivory hedgehog with its size taken into account. It appeared to be an older model that had not been in use for a few years. Silver briefly wondered if it was even still usable. Pushing himself up from the couch, he tiptoed to the machine and placed a hand on its black screen.

Looking it over, he wondered if Shadow even used it. If the dust was anything to go off, that was a definite no. Besides, he didn't take Shadow to be one to lay around all day and stare at a screen. But then why would he have one in the first place?

Running his eyes over the front of the device, he observed the many knobs that decorated the front and decided to try the largest button first. His immediate reward was with loud voices and followed by even louder cheering. Silver's eyes widened, and he hurried to turn off the machine, the T.V. seeming to grow louder as he fumbled with it.

When it was finally shut off, Silver sat there as still as he could, now shaking and waiting for Shadow to come stomping into the room and start yelling at him. Needless to say, he was very confused when nothing like that happened. Letting himself relax, he shot the T.V. an accusing glare before standing up and wandering about the apartment. His wandering eventually turned into pacing as he grew more restless. He was alone in a room with a horrid color matchup with his only way of knowing that any time was passing being the steadily increasing brightness of the room.

That's when he paused, his eyes falling onto the window which still had its blinds pulled over its glass. There were bits of light shining in, and Silver blinked at the window. It was then that he realized that he hadn't seen this world yet. The most he ever recalled from the previous day was the stone he had been trapped under, the apartment he was staying in, and a brief glimpse of a busy street. His curiosity now piqued higher than it was before, he walked to the blinds and decided to peek through the little holes first.

His first emotion was of disappointment as he could barely see through such small holes, but as minutes went by, he began to grow content with the little vision he got. He could see buildings, some taller while others a little smaller and he could see just how the sun was trying its best to shine over the buildings' tops. The bright light blinded him, hurting his eyes, but to him, it was no problem when he had gotten the chance to see some of this world. It was so much smaller, so much blander than the future he had hailed from, and somehow that excited him.

Now feeling a little braver, he lifted a hand and lead it upwards, where he began to part the blinds. His heart began pumping at the thought of just a little more world revealed to him. To see so much more of this place with a single gaze. He was so close to seeing, to being able to experience just a little more, the board almost entirely moved away. And then the clearing of a throat froze him in place.

C:C:

Shadow groaned as he turned to his side, taking his pillow with him and using it to cover his face. He hated mornings. If he could, he would sleep until noon and start his day from there. But despite his not being a morning person, the thought of him wasting time while there was at least something productive he could be doing was enough to drag him out of bed. With a little more will, he was able to bring himself to pull himself out of bed and at least sit on the edge. He blinked a couple of times, a feeble attempt to try to clear the sleep from his eyes before he stood up from his seat to begin his usual morning rituals.

As usual for these type of mornings, his mind drifted about contemplating whatever it was that may come to mind. Sometimes these thoughts were on later today, while others were those of the past. That morning had the great privilege of putting together the list of things that he needed to get done. He had work–of course–and he also needed to go to the store as his food supply was running short. After that, there wasn't much else to do, so perhaps he could find some way to take a walk around the block. He shrugged, though finding the idea a bit underwhelming, it was still appealing.

In his mind, the plan was set and would be begun as soon as he was ready. At least, it would have been his plan had it not been for a loud noise coming from outside his room, tearing him away from his thoughts and accomplishing to make him jump. His first instinct was to run out there and threaten whoever had made the sound. But he held himself back, as it suddenly hit him who had made the noise and all those plans he had made practically slipped down the drain. Silver was here. Someone who was meant to be dead–dead alongside a ruined future–was in his apartment and messing with his things. He had no work today. Rouge had promised him that. He had as long as he needed to help Silver recover. And maybe, just maybe, get some form of information before reporting Silver's presence to G.U.N. He had forgotten all about this, and his idea for another eventless day wasted away.

Now there were other ideas in his head. Some of them he thought he had buried in the past. Like how was Silver here? While it had not been outright confirmed, the princess of Soleanna had said that anything from the future would no longer be. Silver had been one of those things from the future. He, his friend, and most importantly, Mephiles and Iblis would no longer exist in their plane of existence. Silver had been compliant with this news. He had been ready to die in return for the future's guaranteed safety and for that everyone there counted him a hero, even despite his previous actions.

Now that Silver was back though, the weight of his supposed death was no longer there and was instead replaced with great confusion and worry. If Silver was back, then could others be as well?

He shook his head, deciding then that he wouldn't think on those thoughts until he had the chance to talk to Silver. If there were anything wrong with the future, then there would be no reason for Silver to hide them. Deciding they would talk after breakfast, he hurried up his morning routine and, after putting on a dull grey shirt (because he felt like it), exited his bedroom and entered the main room.

Entering the room, he opened his mouth to speak as he already knew Silver was awake if the loud screeching of the T.V. was anything to go by. What he didn't expect was Silver to be hunched in front of the window, face practically pressed into the blinds. Shadow blinked, tilting his head in confused curiosity. What was he doing now? His confusion quickly melted into a frown, and he cleared his throat loudly to get the other's attention.

The response he received was Silver seizing up in his place and unmoving for the next few seconds. Shadow blinked at the reaction before sighing and shaking his head. He turned away from the other hedgehog and instead headed for the miniature fridge. He didn't try and start a conversation and instead left that to his guest. He didn't have to wait long.

"O-oh, good morning, Shadow!" Silver's voice called out, from the sound of his voice still by the window. "How are you?"

Shadow shrugged as he pulled at a small carton of milk, frowning when he felt the weightlessness of the product. "Fine. What about you? I trust you got some sleep last night."

"Huh? O-oh, yeah," Silver stuttered in return, "best sleep I've had in a while time...hehe."

Shadow nodded his head in response, not entirely listening to the answer. Instead, his mind was more focused on what it was he was running low on. He had just pulled out a carton of eggs, which when opened only showed off three eggs. He glared down at the eggs as if it were their fault, it was nearly empty, before standing up and placing the items on the counter. It was then that he felt another presence and realized that Silver had moved once again. This time hovering right beside him.

"What are you doing?" Silver asked, trying his best to look over Shadow's shoulder. The ebony hedgehog sighed and turned to meet the other face to face. He had to look down to meet Silver's eyes, and it was then that he took notice of the height difference between them. Hadn't Silver been taller before?

"Making breakfast." Shadow quickly responded, turning back around to try and find a pan. "I hope you don't mind eggs."

Silver shook his head, folding his arms over his chest as he watched Shadow, "Not really. I don't really care what I eat. As long as it tastes good."

Shadow nodded his head, accepting the answer and getting to work on the food. He had only cracked one egg when Silver had begun to talk again.

"So...I forgot to ask yesterday, but how have things been going? I-I mean I know it's been a while, so...so something must have happened…"

Shadow's only response was to shrug his shoulders as he tossed eggshells into the trash. "I suppose a few things have happened. I'm sure Rouge would be more than willing to fill you in."

Silver's shoulders fell, the answer not being the one he had wanted. Not at all. He leaned against the counter, eyes tracing over the abstract designs. It was once again quiet in the room with only the sound of eggs cooking in the frying pan.

No start of a conversation was attempted even when Shadow had finished making the breakfast and had given Silver the majority of the portion. Nor when they had both gone to sit down on the couch, leaving a couple feet of space between them. It wasn't until they had eaten half the meal that Shadow decided to actually start anything.

"'Heard you found the T.V.," he simply said, eyes on the object of the topic. Silver paused in his eating, fork hovering mid-air. A smile cracked over his partly open mouth as he set the fork back on the plate, and a nervous laugh was made.

Shadow rolled his eyes and folded his arms, "You're welcome to use it. I suppose it'd be better for it to be used than to collect dust."

"O-oh. Oh! That's really ni–thank you. Thank you," Silver smiled, one that seemed honest and genuine unlike the ones before. Silver shifted where he sat before going back to his breakfast, the air around them lighter by a slight margin.

After that, silence once again reigned. Both had finished eating and were now just sitting on the couch uncomfortable. Silver, after sneaking a wary glance over to Shadow, picked himself up from his seat and looked around the room as if looking for something. Shadow just sat there on the couch, watching the other hedgehog from the corner of his eye but also thinking. He wasn't planning to stay inside all day, but he wasn't too keen on leaving the newcomer in his home on his own. Shadow sighed and peered over to Silver, who was now frowning and looked very confused. His yellow eyes locked with Shadow's and he showed an embarrassed smile.

"I-is there a remote for the T.V.? I could have sworn I read..." he trailed off, instead of taking to play with his hands and bite down on his bottom lip.

Shadow looked at Silver, wondering if the younger was joking before rolling his eyes. "There is none. If there somehow was one, it certainly didn't come with the television when I bought it."

"Oh…" Silver blushed bright red and looked away. He held a hand over his mouth, perhaps trying to hide the blush but it did no good. He dragged himself back to the couch, sat down, and began to play with the loose fabric he had found on the sofa. Shadow sighed, knowing he had once again doomed the room back to silence. While the silence before had been somewhat comfortable, this one was not, and he didn't like that. But there was only one thing he could think of to get an actual conversation going. Sighing heavily, he sat up straight, snapped his best glare towards Silver and said, "You're not dead."

The response was exactly the one he wanted, the statement being strong enough to drag Silver's attention back to him. The white hedgehog just stared at him, perhaps wondering if it was some kind of joke. When he figured out it most likely was not, he shifted uncomfortably, looking back to the cushion and said, "I guess so."

"How?" Shadow growled out, doing his best to be intimidating. He was good at that part, his voice was deep enough and his eyes naturally forming into a glare. On the outside, he was practically the definition of unpleasant, and with the added advantage of his natural power over Chaos energy, he was hardly spoken against. So when Silver only shrugged he was caught off guard.

"I don't know," Silver replied, still refusing any eye contact, "all I know is I'm sitting here, and my arm hurts."

Shadow frowned. Perhaps he needed to be harder. Getting off the couch, he now towered over Silver and folded his arms over his chest, "That's not an answer. Do you honestly expect me to believe you know nothing?"

Silver looked down at his hands, eyes creasing in annoyance, "I guess? Like I said, I don't know much of what happened."

The silence around then resumed once more, and Silver didn't show any signs of wanting to continue the conversation. If anything, he did everything he could to evade all eye contact and communication. Shadow would have been more than okay with that, not being one for conversation, Unfortunately for the both of them, Shadow had pretty much come to the conclusion that information was being withheld from him, so he responded by the first thought that came to mind.

"You do realize holding information from official law is a crime," Shadow growled out and for once finally got Silver to flinch. If the sitting hedgehog had been uncomfortable before, he definitely was now.

"I-I told you all that I know," Silver stuttered, folding his arms tighter around himself, feeling much smaller than he had been before. Shadow knew of this and pressed on.

"You look rather guilty for someone who claims to be telling the truth," Shadow growled getting closer to Silver's eye level. The younger instinctively looked as far away as possible, bringing up a hand to cover his face. His breathing was getting heavier, his hands clenching tighter. What was happening?! One moment everything had been friendly and calm, the next this was going on. There was so much confusion going through his head, he wanted it to stop.

Shadow only stared at the hiding face before sighing heavily. This hadn't gone the way he wanted it to. But his methods were working it would seem, he just needed a little bit more pressure to be added, and he felt he couldn't accomplish that while being in his apartment. It would seem he'd be going to work after all.

Reaching down, Shadow grabbed the wounded arm, pulling the smaller and much lighter hedgehog up to his feet. Silver gave a soft scream in reply, both from the unexpected action and the pain that shot through his body. He reached over, trying to pry the hand form his arm, but the grip was iron.

"If you're really set on your decision," Shadow forced the albino to meet his eyes, "then I am more than happy to take you to G.U.N. and place you in for questioning. Would you like that, then? You would get to sit in a cold room with 2 or so people who'd just love to have you."

Shadow's teeth glinted in the light as a cruel smirk grew on his face. He aimed to scare the kid, something he was very good at. The black and red of his fur really did help in his favor. He was somewhat disappointed, however, when Silver didn't vocally respond, instead meeting Shadow's gaze with a newfound ferocity.

"Let me go," Silver whispered harshly. He was still trying to remove the hold, but that was again proving to be unsuccessful. That's when Shadow realized something: Silver was using his own body strength.

"You're an idiot," Shadow ground out, pushing Silver away and watching as the younger hedgehog tripped back onto the couch. Shadow's eyes looked over Silver, taking in the new features that were so different from the Silver he had met eight years ago. He was smaller, younger looking, and definitely far skinnier (if that was even possible). But the main thing that got to him was that not once since they had found the albino was the display of psychokinesis used. It was always physical contact…

Shadow turned away and picked up the phone he had left on the kitchen counter. He typed a quick message to Rouge before looking back at Silver, his eyes still narrowed in a "don't test me" look. Silver thankfully didn't say anything, but he certainly tried to convey his feelings through expression.

"We're going to G.U.N. There are things I need to discuss," Shadow explained, walking over to Silver and once again grabbing the bad arm that was more or less beginning to bruise. "You're coming with me."

Silver gawked, eyes going from his hand to Shadow's face then back to hand again. His mouth opened and closed, obviously trying to form something to say but nothing would come out. Shadow only ignored it and shouted those famous two words. There was barely time for another noise to be made before both were taken away in a bright flash of light. Silver, all the while, struggling to pull away.

C:C:

Hiya, everybody! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. It took me longer than I would have liked to get this out there as this was pre-written and I just couldn't get myself to like what was written. I'm still not as happy, but I'm slightly okay with it now, haha.  
Speaking of which, this is the last of the pre-written chapters and from here on out I'll be writing the chapters out from scratch. Will they take longer? Shorter? Heck if I know. Only time shall tell I suppose XD

Anyways, thanks for reading and have a wonderful day. Feel free to leave a review if you'd like. Ciao!


	4. Chapter 4

A huge thanks to my friend, Seer, for beta reading for me!

C:C:

With a flick of a finger, the small room came to life in a flash of light. Rouge the bat looked over the place, still in the same shape it had been since the day before. Almost. Shadow's chair was pushed to the side, just as he had left it when he took off running, but her computer was now closed. She hadn't returned after the scene at Downtown, and she was pretty sure she hadn't shut down the device. She strolled over, running a hand over the white cover of the laptop with a knowing smirk.

Her ear swiveled to the side when she heard the door click open, turning her attention to see the hulking machine that now stood in the doorway. A shiny red and black coat of paint decorated the layers of metal that belonged to the robot. She gave a wave of greeting to the machine while she collapsed back into her chair, folding her arms over her chest as she did so.

"You left the lights on," the machine spoke, eyes looking down to where Rouge sat. His robotic voice made it somewhat hard what emotion it was that he was trying to convey, whether it be sarcasm or just pointing out the obvious. Either way, Rouge didn't care. She just gave him a half-hearted shrug as she pushed her computer open and powered it on.

"You're so strict," she commented, leaning back into her chair while her computer loaded. "You know, just because Shadow does it doesn't make it cool."

The machine tilted its head to the side the best it could, staring blankly at her. Rouge waited for a moment, staring back and trying to decipher what the look could possibly mean. She sat there for about five minutes before it occurred to her that there was no emotion to decipher. She laughed at herself, hardly believing for another time that week she had attempted to read a robot.

"Hey, Omega," she said as she calmed down her laughter, "be a dear and get me some tea? Thanks."

Omega hesitated, processing the request, before giving a nod of confirmation. She hardly had to convince him this time, she noted, as the giant robot went stomping out of the room to fulfill the task given. She breathed a sigh of relief, glad that she wouldn't end up being the only one in the office today. She pulled in her chair and immediately got onto work, her fingers clicking against the white keyboard. It wasn't as lovely as the one she had at home, but it was good enough.

She began with her usual, checking her emails to make sure they weren't being requested to go out on some sort of mission. Very rarely did she ever receive any kind of request in her inbox, but she had been proven otherwise. Today would not be one of those days seeing as the most she found in her inbox were ads for makeup and other "questionable" services. Not even something on jewelry now wasn't that a waste.

Closing that window, she decided to open a Word document and begin writing down a report. One that told a lie that she could feed to the higher authorities. She didn't care how it would make its way up, but she needed the message to be believable. She had promised Shadow all the time he needed, and that wasn't obtainable when he just so happened to be as famous as he was. But she already had some ideas.

Perhaps a story about Shadow finding a lead? The robot that had attacked the city had certainly not been one of Eggman's, and if it was, then it had had quite the upgrade. If this was a new threat, it was hard to argue against a further investigation. She wasn't too concerned about whether or not it made perfect sense. It's only purpose was to make sure Shadow was in no sort of danger of being found out. As long as it served that purpose, then that was all that was needed.

She had just reached a paragraph into her story when she heard her phone buzz by her arm. Both ears swiveled in the direction of the device, tilting her head a little to the side in curiosity. Rouge wondered who could be texting her at this hour. The only one she could think of was Shadow, but he rarely used the phone for such purposes. But then there was no one else who came to mind other than the last people on earth. Gently, she picked up the phone and read who it was contacting her. Her eyes went wide when she realized that it was her first guess, after all.

"Coming in, have Omega ready," she read aloud, her eyes narrowing into a confused frown. It didn't take her long before she suddenly realized what was happening. Growling to herself, she stood up from her chair and began to pace back and forth, grumbling all sorts of curses under her breath. She remained in this state even when Omega returned, a small glass of iced tea being supported in two giant hands. The robot's eyes followed Rouge back and forth, taking the brief moment to register what she was doing before digging through memory files to figure out what this behavior signified.

"What did Shadow do?" Omega asked, taking a couple of substantial steps towards the bat's desk to gently place the glass on the counter. If he could have feelings, he'd be quite proud of himself for managing not to break the flimsy cup. With the container in a safe enough place, he turned to watch Rouge with his unblinking eyes to hear the situation.

"What did he do?" Rouge repeated, her voice was strained as she tried to keep her anger at bay. It worked to an extent. "Oh, you know, doing the usual. Thinking he's smarter than I am and dragging half-dead kids across the city. Don't you just love it when he does that?"

"...You are using sarcasm?"

Rouge huffed, her wings twitching from her back as she marched back over towards her desk and plopped herself into the white chair. She kicked up her legs to rest on the counter and folded her arms over her chest. She was "sulking" as Shadow had put it once, and Omega knew it was a negative trait that could be destructive if not handled correctly. So, he stood there, running through all possible solutions to help ease the situation. One thing he had learned while working with Team Dark was that work was practically impossible when the bat and hedgehog were fighting. The two were incredibly close, but when problems such as these arose, they were at each other's throats. Finally, finding the correct memory file, he took a cautious step forward and lowered himself to look Rouge in the eye.

"If you would like, if the best possible outcome is made possible, I will aid you in a battle against Shadow the Hedgehog. He will bow before our great power, and we will make him plead for mercy." He spoke this with as much emotion as could be made with his soulless body, but Rouge couldn't help but giggle. Just how strong he sounded about the situation and she knowing he would indeed hold true to his word was too amusing for her.

"I'll be holding you to it," Rouge winked to the machine and couldn't help when her grin grew broader. Especially when Omega gave the announcement that he was setting a date for the matter.

But that was about as long as their conversation lasted. For the next moment, the sensor on Omega's screen was going off and was alerting both to an abundance of Chaos energy. Neither had time to react; as soon as the notification was displayed, Shadow had Chaos Controlled into the room. Silver stood by his side, still struggling for freedom.

"Showtime," Rouge muttered under her breath before standing up from her chair and staring directly into the eyes of her partner. Omega had already stepped in the middle of them, ready to stop things from going too far.

"She is not pleased with you," Omega informed, sounding somewhat happy with his obvious statement. Shadow merely gave the slightest nod, before turning to face Rouge altogether. Though his grip tightened on Silver, making the newcomer squirm from where he stood.

"What have I done this time?" Shadow asked, tilting his head to the side. His voice was rich with disinterest which only further grated on the bat's nerves. Rouge gritted her teeth and would have torn Shadow to shreds had it not been for Omega holding her back.

Rouge turned her wild eyes to Omega, before snapping them to Silver, who seemed to now be trying to wiggle out of Shadow's grip. His efforts remained ineffective still.

"Silver, come here!" Rouge snapped, suddenly, pointing to the empty spot beside her. Silver froze and blinked, most likely surprised that he was even being addressed. Rouge was about to repeat herself, but Omega swiftly intervened.

"I am detecting high levels of dread coming from the tiny thing," Omega informed, pointing to Silver.

Shadow turned to look at Silver, his eyes narrowed, before releasing the white hedgehog and striding over to stand in front of Rouge's desk. He folded his arms and stared down at her expectantly, awaiting the rant he knew was coming. Though, instead of bombarding the ebony creature with insults as expected, Rouge only glared daggers at her partner, leaving an awkward silence in the room. Shadow sighed and shook his head, before turning away and walking back to Silver, who hadn't left his place since arrival.

"If you've got nothing better to say, we might as well get down to business," Shadow growled, grabbing Silver by the back of his worn shirt and forcing him to sit in a spare chair. Rouge was about to reprimand Shadow's rough actions but was quickly silenced by the black and red hedgehog.

"I know you want him to get rest and to heal," Shadow casually gestured to the seated hedgehog. "But there are more important matters we need to discuss. Immediately."

Rouge clenched her hands, her knuckles going white from the strain. She focused not on his words and more so on her own concerns, "Tell me, Shadow. Where was the error in waiting, oh I don't know, more than twelve hours?"

Shadow scoffed, rolling his eyes, "Technically it's been fourteen hours. And to answer your question, because I'm trying to keep Mobius safe and I'm quite certain he has no idea what he's doing."

"Hey!" Silver jumped to his feet, "I totally know what I'm doing. Maybe it is you who doesn't know what they're...doing."

Shadow didn't even look behind him. He just pointed to the chair and said smoothly, "Sit down."

"Shadow," Rouge growled, standing up from her chair. She leaned over her desk, jamming her finger into Shadow's chest and glaring at him. But she didn't add anything to the sentence. She only stood there, like a stone statue, staring into the crimson eyes of her partner. The room once more fell into silence.

"This is growing tiring," Omega butt in, stepping as close as he could to push the two apart. "If you are to fight, your focus on the objective will be lost. Also, this is a small room and hardly decent enough for a satisfactory battle."

Rouge sniffed, her ear twitching with annoyance, "Omega, not right now. Take Silver outside."

Omega almost appeared hurt, or at least that was the feeling he tried to emulate. His shoulders slumped, his eyes looked more dead, and his walk cycle was more labored. He wouldn't argue, though. After all, these sort of fights were never his specialty, so a task he could actually handle was more probable to succeed.

Silver raised a hand and opened his mouth as if he were about to argue, but after catching Shadow's glare, he decided against it. Quietly, he shuffled over to Omega's side who dropped his heavy hand on the boy's shoulder and lead him out of the room. Rouge caught a last glance of Silver's worried eyes before Omega shut the door behind him. It was just her and Shadow now, alone, with no one to stop things if they were to grow out of hand.

The bat stared at Shadow, waiting for him to make the next move. She had eliminated all distractions, leaving his only focus to be on her. The perfect setting. She folded her arms over her chest, tapping her upper arm with an index finger as she awaited his next words.

Shadow, knowing full well what it was Rouge wanted, sighed heavily and let his eyes slide closed. He seemed almost entirely relaxed as he reopened them and gave a brief nod, "Alright, go ahead. Scream and yell. Tell me what it is I've done wrong."

Rouge smirked, "Finally."

With this, she drew back her hand, and, with incredible strength, backhanded Shadow. The echo of the smack echoed in the silent room, leaving Rouge more satisfied than she could have hoped. A red mark began to show itself on his cheek, and Shadow tenderly touched it, not even flinching when he made contact.

"You want to know why I'm mad?" Rouge asked, placing her hands on her hips. "I'm mad because you didn't listen to me."

Shadow frowned, letting his hand fall to his side and glared down at the white bat, "Rouge, you know better than anyone in this place that I would never place you in danger."

"Oh, but if it's a kid you don't mind?" Rouge scoffed, rolling her turquoise eyes.

"That's not what I–ugh, Rouge, listen. I needed to talk to you about this, and I figured it would be better to talk in person. They could have the phone tapped or something of the sort." Shadow tried, but he was now starting to see the flaws in his plan. Besides, Rouge was stubborn. If she didn't agree with it, chances were he wasn't going to persuade her easily.

"Shadow, everything remotely related to G.U.N. is tapped. Our homes, our favorite places to eat, heck I wouldn't be surprised if they've tapped every vehicle in Westopolis. It's not an abnormality."

"So you're saying that there really is no safe place?" Shadow sighed and finally turned away, pinching the skin between his eyes. They had gotten absolutely nowhere but in one large circle, bickering like an old married couple. Yet no matter how much he would have loved to pin it on Rouge, it had his fingerprints all over.

The ebony hedgehog felt a hand on his shoulder and turned around to see the worried frown of Rouge. She stared at him, eye creased, and no doubt having the same thoughts as he was. Shadow sniffed and turned around, but her hand never left his shoulder, only moving to adjust. They stared at each other for a couple moments before Rouge pulled away, letting the tips of her fingers trail a bit longer. A gesture Shadow was used to. One that meant "I'm sorry, but I can't say it."

They once more fell into silence, but it was a comfortable one. Their previous aura of hostility had disappeared, leaving only the two with each other's company. Rouge walked back to her desk, taking her seat once more and began to work as if nothing had ever happened. Shadow came over to join her, supposing he could be of some sort of assistance and watched her work.

Rouge sensed Shadow behind her, and her fingers froze in place. She turned to look up at him, a grim expression now upon her face, "You know, I'm glad you sent Silver out. Because I wanted to review something with you."

Shadow crossed his arms and leaned against the bat's chair, "Go on."

Rouge returned to her typing, pulling up a new page which Shadow recognized immediately as the G.U.N. scanners. The black and grey flickered as it played, showing what was undoubtedly the plaza that had been demolished the day prior. The only difference was, it was as if nothing had ever touched it.

Rouge cleared her throat, pausing the video with a click, "When I got home yesterday, I requested the footage. Thought it could be useful to look over and well...I got a little more than I bargained for."

"Which is?" Shadow asked, leaning over the chair to gain a better look. Rouge returned to her computer and pulled up two separate graphs, one red and the other blue.

"That wasn't Chaos Control," Rouge informed. She dragged her mouse to the signature highlighted in red and circled it. Shadow squinted, doing what he could to memorize the patterns. He recalled seeing them in multiple areas, especially when the Chaos Emeralds.

"And then this," she circled the signature with the mouse. "is whatever our friend used."

This time, she circled the blue graph signature, which seemed to be almost identical to the one belonging to Chaos Control. Only the spikes in this one were far less sporadic, unlike the Chaos Emeralds. It was almost as if they were following some sort of rhythm. Rouge leaned back in her chair and looked up at Shadow, folding her arms over her chest with a frown.

"What do you make of it?" she asked her right ear twitching. Shadow rubbed his chin, analyzing each signature with a careful eye.

"Perhaps it has something to do with his own abilities?" Shadow suggested.

Rouge shook her head, "I thought about that. But when I looked at the Chaos signatures shared between you and Sonic, they were nearly identical. Only Blue's has weaker results. Shadow, whatever Silver used, is something we've never seen before."

Shadow stood straight and cocked his head to the side, "Surely there must be some kind of explanation. No one can just find such a powerful source of power, and it not be known. As much as I hate to admit it, G.U.N. is very proactive when it comes to finding objects like these."

Rouge shrugged, "Perhaps he used a corrupted emerald?"

Shadow sighed and shook his head, turning away from the computer and looking at the closed door, "I suppose we'll just need to ask him."

Rouge closed her laptop, "That seems like our only option at this point. Although, I'm not so sure how willing he'd be to talk. Considering what he just witnessed."

"No one said it was an easy option" Shadow spoke, making his way to the front door. He wrapped his fingers around the brass knob, stepping out of the way to allow Rouge exit when a blue aura ignited across the knob. Shadow hardly had time to do anything before he was knocked back, slamming into the opposing wall with a loud grunt.

"Shadow!" Rouge screamed, running to her friend's side. She reached out to touch him, to help him up, but Shadow pushed her away. He gave her a soft "I'm fine" before glaring at the door that was once more glowing a light blue.

"What _is*_ that?" asked Rouge, looking to Shadow for any sort of answer. Were they under attack? Was this the new villain they had been worried about? How had they gotten past their defenses? These were all the questions that circled through Rouge's mind, going around and around in circles. But Shadow knew. Rouge could tell with how his expression had molded from pain to disappointment.

Shadow looked at her with disappointment and said, "I was wrong."

C:C:

Heya, there! After quite some time, Chapter 4 is finally finished! This took me more time because ugh, I wanted this to make sense. Maybe it doesn't make enough sense but hey! I finished it. I hope you enjoyed and feel free to let me know what you thought. Ciao! ^_^


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